Charleston-born, New York-based artist Merton D. Simpson passed away recently at the age of 84.  As a recent New York Times article reports, he left behind a formidable collection of art, a legacy of mastery as a painter—and a tangle of legal issues.

Beginning with his first show in Charleston, through his years as a student and as an artist for the U.S. Air Force, and as a force in the New York art world for more than five decades, Mr. Simpson experimented with abstract and expressionist painting.  By the 1950s, his work was appearing in exhibitions at the Guggenheim and the Museum of Modern Art.  Mr. Simpson also gained prominence as a collector, dealer, and expert in African and tribal art; he owned a highly-regarded gallery in Manhattan, the Merton D. Simpson Gallery.

Although his art holdings are likely worth millions of dollars, this fortune is illiquid; and upon his death, his family struggled to find funds to provide for his funeral and burial expenses.  Meanwhile, potential legal battles loom over his stunning collection of African and tribal art, as well as an archive of works by Mr. Simpson and other twentieth-century artists.  The feuding parties include Mr. Simpson’s son, Merton Simpson, Jr., a legislator from Albany County, New York; a friend who once helped run his gallery; another friend and fellow collector who provided financial support for the gallery; other family members; and an elder-care lawyer who served as Mr. Simpson’s court-appointed guardian and who now controls his estate until his will can be validated.

Even as many mourn the end of a life dedicated to art, it seems that legal disputes may shape the final chapter and the legacy of Merton D. Simpson.